One of the big surprises of The Whisky Show in London last week was Starward, a new Australian whisky from New World Whisky Distillery in Melbourne. Their flagship single malt is made from Australian barley and matured exclusively in apera (Australian sherry) casks. They got a lot of people talking at the show and this was one of my stand-out whiskies of the whole weekend.

Colour: Deep copper.Nose: Toffee apples, Victoria sponge, raisins in caramel sauce, dried mango.Mouth: Thick in the mouth. Chewy. Chocolate raisins, malted bread, a bit of mint and again that dried mango.Finish: Fairly short, mint chocolate.Comments: This whisky exceeded all my expectations. Starward are clearly out there doing their own thing and it totally works. I also love the artwork. 88 points.SHARE

Following their own path, satisfying, singular and uniquely Australian, Starward Whisky goes well with Dirty Three.